My Mother's Brother Phil, never married. He was always alone. Growing up, we only heard from him a few times a year. At his funeral a woman showed up with a shoebox full of letters from the 1940s and gave them to us. Phil had amazing elegant handwriting and these were all love letters from Phil to this woman. I mean LOVE letters. She was Catholic and my Grandpa was a pretty tough Protestant who forbade the union. Phil's letters were full of "You are a good person don't listen to what my family says" affirmations towards her. All this while he's in flight school then stationed during the war. None of us knew this happened or that he was even capable of "love". I found a wedding announcement in his possessions from her saying that she married in 1946. I speculate that it had such an impact on him that he never married. Her husband passed and at the funeral, sobbing told us Phil was the only one she ever really loved... We were all shocked and saddened.
This seems like it should be a movie script but it actually happened. The fact that this was all hidden until after his passing boggles my mind.
